


Missing, Presumed Dead

by hlravensnest_archivist



Category: Highlander: The Raven
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2003-12-31
Updated: 2003-12-31
Packaged: 2018-12-16 22:15:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11838093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hlravensnest_archivist/pseuds/hlravensnest_archivist
Summary: Note from Daire, the archivist: this story was originally archived atHL Raven's Nest. Deciding to give the stories a more long-term home, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address onHL Raven's Nest's collection profile.





	Missing, Presumed Dead

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Daire, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [HL Raven's Nest](http://fanlore.org/wiki/HL_Raven%27s_Nest). Deciding to give the stories a more long-term home, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [HL Raven's Nest's collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/hlravensnest/profile).

Missing, Presumed Dead by RSS

_Missing, Presumed Dead_

By RSS 

* * *

Amanda walks down a busy Paris street having decided to celebrate the first day of spring with a shopping spree when she senses another Immortal. Taking a casual look around, she spots the other Immortal: a man who looks in his early twenties on the opposite side of the street. He dashes into the street and a car slams on its breaks. He jumps back on the sidewalk and the driver swears at the Immortal then drives on. The Immortal looks then runs across the street and up to Amanda. He steps back and puts up his hands. 

“Don’t be afraid! Please!” The man continues in a Belgian accent. “I know you are like me. I can’t explain it. I can only sense it. You must believe me.” 

“I know. I am Amanda.” 

“I have much to tell you. We need to talk in private. I live two blocks from here. I know this is forward, but there is another woman there.” 

“Is she also like us?” 

“No, she’s like everyone else.” 

“What is your name?” 

“I am Fernand de Houthulst.” 

* * *

Fernand takes Amanda to a small apartment where another woman waits. She has a plump build and gray streaks in her hair and looks to be in her fifties. 

“Bonita, this is Amanda! She’s just like me! Amanda, this is Bonita.” 

Bonita gives a slight nod. Amanda couldn’t tell if Bonita’s look was that of a jealous lover or a disapproving mother. Fernand motions at a chair. “Sit down, please.” 

Amanda sits and Fernand tells his story. 

> “I was born in 1894. August 15, 1914, was the last normal day of my life. That is if you can call fighting in combat normal. I was a Private in the Belgian army when the Germans reached our trench line. I was reloading my rifle when a German bayoneted me. I woke up confused; I was still alive. A couple of Germans pointed their rifles and yelled for me to put my hands up and they led me toward a group of prisoners. Then the German who bayoneted me ran up and gave me a close look before he yelled for his Lieutenant. The Lieutenant looked incredulous. The soldier pointed at my bloody and torn uniform. The Lieutenant appeared to take his Private’s observation seriously. The Lieutenant took a knife and cut my hand. Seconds later some electrical sparks repaired the cut. 
> 
> “The Privates jumped back and the Lieutenant made two more cuts. When the same thing happened, the Lieutenant called over a Corporal. Then he had the three Privates guard me. Soon a solitary cell became my home. There were interrogations and experiments. The war ended and they moved me around a few times, and another cell became my home. Apparently an indestructible soldier was too valuable to give up. There was a change in government and another war. When that one ended I was moved to the United States. The scientists who did their experiments on me also moved to the United States. They went home at night; a cell was my home. The scientists got old and retired. They were the Nazis. They told the new scientists that I was the result of a Nazi experiment. I told my story to everyone. 
> 
> “Bonita was the only one who ever believed me. Last month she drugged the guards and we ran away. I would like to go home, but Bonita wisely pointed out Belgium was too obvious a place for us to go.” 

Amanda collects her thoughts. “So I’m the only other Immortal you’ve come across?” 

“Yes, do you know others like us?” 

“Yes, I’ve known many others like us. The last normal day of my life, my first death, was in the year 850.” 

“So you’re twelve hundred years old?” 

“Yes, we can only die if our heads are cut off.” 

“Thank God they never thought of that.” 

Bonita steps forward. “So you’ve seen people like you die?” 

“Yes, many times.” Amanda turns to Fernand and continues. “The sensation you felt when you came near me is called ‘The Quickening’. It’s how we know when another one of us is around. When an Immortal loses his or her head near another Immortal the surviving Immortal gets the dead Immortal’s Quickening. There are many Immortals who will try to kill you just for ‘The Quickening’.” 

Fernand shakes his head. “This is a living nightmare.” 

“It’s not all bad, Fernand. I’ll teach you what you need to know to survive. You’ve already lived longer than you could have imagined.” 

Bonita asks, with a suspicious tone in her voice, “How do we know you aren’t after Fernand for this Quickening?” 

“Why would I tell you this?” 

Bonita apparently accepts Amanda’s logic. 

* * *

Amanda gives Fernand his first a fencing lesson at The Sanctuary. Bonita studiously watches them. 

“That’s enough for today, Fernand.” 

“How did I do?” 

“You seem preoccupied.” 

“It’s been a lot piled onto what we already have.” 

“When you are training or fighting you have to learn to put everything else aside. When other Immortals come for your head that will be all that’s on their mind. Why don’t you hit the showers?” 

“Thank you, I’ll keep in mind what you told me.” Fernand steps out of the gym. 

After a few minutes Amanda approaches Bonita. “Would it be too forward to ask what the story is between you and Fernand?” 

“It’s the usual story. I devoted my early years to a career and found myself in middle management at middle age. When I first started, I looked about as old as Fernand. Then I watched myself grow old. I saw the equipment replaced with newer equipment. Fernand never changed, which made me feel even older. Fernand took an interest in me. We would have long conversations about my feelings, my hopes, and the deaths of my family members. I checked out his story, and yes, there was a Belgian Private Fernand de Houthulst who went missing at the beginning of World War I. I found I’ve devoted a career and the best years of my life to wrongfully holding an innocent man captive and conducting cruel experiments on him. So I planned and executed his breakout.” 

Amanda senses another Immortal, meaning Nick has come home. He hasn’t been around much these last few days; he and Bert have been hush–hush about their latest case. Nick walks into the gym. 

“Hello Nick, this is Bonita.” 

Nick’s eyes light up. Amanda senses something is wrong. “Bonita Gelt? Fernand de Houthulst is an Immortal?” 

“How do you know this?” 

“I sense another Immortal; I assume it’s him. Her boyfriend is a terrorist. She helped him break out. He killed six guards in the process.” 

Fernand shouts from the gym’s entrance, “That’s not true! I’m not a terrorist! We didn’t kill anyone!” 

Amanda notices Bonita’s expression; she has been holding out on Fernand. Nick pulls out a picture of Bonita and Fernand. 

“You’re telling me you weren’t being held? Then I suppose these aren’t pictures of you.” 

“They are of us! I was being held, but I didn’t do anything wrong. We didn’t kill anyone breaking out.” 

“I killed them. Fernand didn’t know anything about it.” 

Fernand turns to Bonita. “You told me you drugged them and they would only be unconscious for an hour or two.” 

“Fernand, we couldn’t chance one of them getting up. We needed as much time as possible.” 

Nick directs his fury at Bonita. “So you murdered six people for convenience?” 

Amanda raises her hand. “What’s done is done.” 

Nick steps close to Amanda. “So we just sweep murder under the rug.” 

“Nick, you’re an Immortal. It’s time you started to think like one. A government agency knew about him and they were holding him captive to figure out what makes him tick. That’s a threat to every Immortal. We’re lucky Bonita broke him out before they figured out how to kill him or that there were any more of us.” 

“So what am I supposed to do?” 

“I tell you what you are not going to do. No way are you going to turn him in.” 

“What are you going to do, kill me?” 

“Nick, don’t even joke about that.” 

“You still haven’t answered my question.” 

“You, don’t do anything. You didn’t see anyone else here. Go through some motions as if you’re looking but don’t find anything. This is too important to let something like your sense of duty get in the way. What happened to Fernand is every Immortal’s nightmare. If they ever find out there are more of us they will hunt us down and cage us up like animals until they find out how to kill us. Then they will kill every one of us they find or force us to do their bidding.” 

Nick plops into a chair. “I understand.” 

* * *

It has been two days since Nick met Fernand and Bonita. Nick doesn’t like the situation but realizes this is one case he can’t solve. Amanda feels the sensation that tells her Nick has returned. Nick enters The Sanctuary and rushes to Amanda. 

“Amanda, we have trouble. Bert has solved the case. I talked him into taking you along for the bust. It’ll be you, him, and me.” 

“I’ll change and call them.” 

“You meet us out front.” 

Amanda nods and rushes to her suite. 

* * *

They drive up to Fernand and Bonita’s apartment. Bert looks at the top of the apartment. “They are on the sixth floor.” 

“You and Amanda go through the front door. I’ll go around the back in case they try some acrobatics.” 

Amanda and Bert step out of the SUV and walk into the apartment. Amanda has a clipboard and a pen in her hand. They make their way to Fernand and Bonita’s apartment. Bert steps to the side and draws his gun as Amanda knocks on the door. She holds the clipboard in one hand and a pen in the other. Bonita cracks open the door. Bert flings open the door and pushes Bonita to the side and points his gun at Fernand. 

“Freeze!” 

Fernand picks up a knife on the table. 

“Put down the knife!” 

Amanda draws her gun and shoots Fernand a few times. He crashes through the window and falls to the street below; Bonita screams. Bert looks out the window shakes his head and looks at Amanda. 

“You didn’t have to do that!” 

“He had a knife!” 

Bert turns his attention to Bonita. “You! Put your hands on the wall!” 

“Bert, let her go! You’ve got the one you want!” 

“What, are you getting sentimental all of a sudden? Put your hands on the wall!” Bert looks over at Amanda wearing her shocked look. The ruse convinced Bert she’s of no use. He holsters his gun and walks over to Bonita. 

“I said let her go!” Bert ignores her. 

Amanda points her gun at Bert. “Let her go! I’ve killed once today.” 

Bert backs away. “What are you going to do shoot me?” 

Amanda nods at Bonita. “Go!” 

Bonita takes a couple steps then runs out the door. Amanda holds the gun on Bert until she hears police sirens then puts the gun away. “I’m sure he was just using her.” 

Bert shakes his head. 

“She wasn’t here, understand!” 

Bert storms out of the apartment. 

* * *

Amanda and Nick check some baggage and get boarding passes for a flight to the United States. Nick gives Amanda his boarding pass. They walk to a coffee shop and see Fernand and Bonita are seated at a table and walk over. Nick gives Bonita a hug. Amanda hugs Fernand and takes the boarding passes out of Fernand’s jacket pocket and replaces them with the boarding passes to the United States. Then they sit down. 

“Did you do it?” 

“Yes, Fernand, you have the boarding passes to the States.” 

Bonita smiles. “Thank you for all you’ve done.” 

“A friend of mine will meet you at the airport. He’s a very good fighter. He will teach you what you’ll need to know to survive.” 

A couple of minutes later there’s the first call for passengers for Fernand and Bonita’s flight. Fernand and Bonita say their good-byes and walk out of the coffee shop. Amanda takes a sip of coffee. 

“It’s a brave new world for them.” 

“For us too in a way. I think our partnership with Bert is dissolved.” 

“You could still work with him.” 

“No, I think the choice is between working with him or staying with you.” 

“And you choose to stay with me? I’m flattered.” 

“Would you really have shot him?” 

“Some questions it’s best not to ask and best not to answer. Let’s just enjoy the weekend in Brussels.” 

* * *

**EPILOGUE**

Bert Myers sits in his office. A man and a woman are in the office with him. They both look about forty and have on black suits and both are tall. The woman’s skirt goes to her knees and has on black stiletto heeled shoes. She has blood red lipstick and nail polish. The man steps in front of Bert. 

“We are not pleased with the outcome of this case.” 

“Some freelancer I hired didn’t behave professionally.” 

“We read that in the report.” 

“Don’t worry, I’m terminating all relations with her. She’ll never work for me again.” 

“That’s not what we want.” 

“What do you want?” 

The woman sits on the desk in front of Bert. “We want you to keep all relations with her. Strengthen them if possible.” 

“We want to know where she goes, who she meets, and anything else you can find out about her.” 

The woman gently grabs Bert shoulder. “It’s a matter of keeping our friends close--” she pulls her face close to Bert’s, “and our enemies closer.” 

“I’m not sure she’ll be willing to come back.” 

The man nods. “Send her a peace offering.” 

The woman gives a quick smile. “Think diamonds.” 

“I’ll see what I can do.” 

The man continues in his monotone voice. “You’ve disappointed us once Bert. Don’t let it happen again.” 

The woman kisses Bert. “We’d hate to terminate all relations with you.” 

The couple walks out. Bert looks at his quivering hands. 

THE END 

* * *

SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLAIMER: This story is a fantasy. No agency of the United States government would act in a manner depicted in this story. 

© 2003   
Please send comments to the author! 

* * *


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